Vivek Ramaswamy is advocating for major reforms to the H-1B visa program, igniting a heated debate within the Republican Party and among supporters of former President Donald Trump.
Trump’s DOGE guy’s push for change aligns him with tech leaders like Elon Musk yet places him at odds with MAGA loyalists who argue that even high-skilled immigration threatens American jobs.
How does H-1B help skilled immigrants?
The H-1B visa program, designed to allow US employers to bring in foreign professionals with specialized skills, has been a point of contention for years. While it provides critical support to industries like technology, critics claim the system displaces American workers, suppresses wages, and exploits foreign labour.
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American Immigration Council cited the median salary for H-1B workers in 2021 was $108,000, significantly higher than the average US worker’s salary of $45,760, highlighting its appeal to skilled professionals.
Ramaswamy calls for merit-based overhaul in H-1B
Ramaswamy has voiced strong disapproval of the current H-1B framework, describing it as “bad for everyone involved.” He believes the program’s lottery-based selection process should be replaced with a merit-based system. “Yup, I’ve long said the current H-1B system is badly broken & needs to be gutted. It shouldn’t use a lottery, it should be based on pure MERIT. It shouldn’t tether workers to just one corporation. Same principles I favour today,” he stated.
The program’s tendency to tie workers to a single sponsoring employer equates to “indentured servitude.” To address this, the biotech entrepreneur advocates for reforms that prioritize genuine merit and allow greater mobility for skilled workers within the US job market. Plus, he supports ending chain-based migration, arguing that family members should not automatically receive the same immigration status as highly skilled immigrants.
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Interestingly, while leading his company Roivant Sciences, Ramaswamy employed several skilled foreign workers through the program.
